How did Hiri Motu become a widely used language in Papua New Guinea?

Hiri Motu, a pidgin variety of the Austronesian language known as Motu, emerged as a lingua franca in the early 20th century in what is now Papua New Guinea.1

The language developed primarily through the efforts of colonial administrators and their nonindigenous police agents, who attempted to communicate in Motu with the indigenous populations surrounding Port Moresby. Because of this origin, it was historically referred to as Police Motu. While the name Hiri Motu may have been adopted due to a perceived connection to hiris—traditional precolonial trade voyages on the Gulf of Papua—the language’s widespread adoption was driven by its utility in trade and administration, eventually spreading from the capital to inland plantations and various trade centers.1